In the army, trapping beaver in the Rockies, on a cattle drive or on the Oregon Trail, people did not have refrigerators. They had to take food that would keep or live off the land. Here is some food you can take camping and not worry about refrigeration or taste. In some cases modern conveniences are shown.
hardtack
corn meal
flour
beans
dried beef
Jerky
salt pork and bacon (make sure it's well cooked!)
rice
beans
nuts
onions
potatoes
Bacon drippings or vegetable oil
saleratus or baking soda
sugar
coffee
salt
dried apples, peaches or other fruit
dry seasonings
Some of these items will spoil, especially if they get wet. They might not be available if you are gone a long time. The mountain men used Indian Turnips instead of Potatoes, for example.
There are some recipes with some ingredients not on the list. Cooks looked for other plants to use instead. Milk and eggs were difficult. You can make johnnie cakes without milk if you add some shortening. Eggs could be found in bird's nests and in other cases ingredients were just left out. Tomatoes in these recipes are a nod for modern tastes because Americans did not eat many tomatoes until the late 1800's.
Hardtack, a cracker-like biscuit made of flour, salt and water, was one of the most typical rations issued to sailors and soldiers by the U. S. government because it was fairly nutritious and unlikely to spoil. For this reason cowboy cooks on cattle drives bought army surplus or later made their own for cattle drives. This hard bread was made in government bakeries located in cities and shipped in barrels. Hardtack had to be tough to withstand the trip. Many complained about this ration noting the extreme hardness of the biscuits (sometimes called "digestible leather," "angel cakes," "teeth dullers," "ammo reserves," and even "ballast" by sailors. At times it had to be broken with a rifle "butt" or a "blow of the fist" to prepare for eating. Hardtack could become infested with insects in the government storehouses or during the soldier’s travels. One disappointed soldier claimed that "All the fresh meat we had came in the hard bread!"
Hardtack Recipe for 10 pieces
Preheat oven to 400° F. For each cup of flour (unbleached wheat), add 1 tsp. of salt. Mix salt and flour with just enough water (about 1/2 c. water per cup of flour) to bind ingredients. This will produce a dough that will not stick to hands, rolling pin or pan. Roll the dough into a rectangular shape about 1/2 inch thick, and cut into squares roughly 3 inches by 3 inches. Press into each square 16 holes about ½ inch apart on both sides. Nail points driven through a board will simplify the pressing. The holes should not press through. Place hardtack squares on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in oven until edges are brown or dough is hard, about 20-25 minutes on each side, making sure all moisture is removed from mixture before taking out of oven. The crackers can be easily broken when fresh but dry and harden as they cool. Note: The longer you bake the hardtack, the more authentic it will appear. If you want to make it softer for eating, bake only about 15 minutes.
Hardtack may be eaten directly but it is hard so softening is suggested. Sometimes the pieces of hardtack were softened by soaking them in coffee, frying them in bacon grease, or crumbling them in soup. Slum Stew was a favorite for using hardtack but you had to have something else to eat.
Ingredients
1 cup bacon drippings
10 lb stew beef, cubed
2 1/2 lb onions
20 tomatoes, chopped
flour: 1/2 cup for dredging beef plus 3 tablespoons per cup of stew broth
seasoning as desired (black pepper, chili pepper, bay leaves or whatever is available)
Dredge in flour and brown stew beef in a skillet or pot. Remove beef to use fat to saute onions until transluscent then add beef back into skillet, add chopped tomatoes, cover the skillet or pot and bake in covered dish in 250o oven for 5 to 7 hours. About an hour before meat will be done remove from oven and drain off about half the juices into a separate skillet. Return stew to oven to continue baking.
Heat juices to simmer and constantly stir in flour skillet to form a gravy. If you want more juices, add bacon drippings and stir in more flour. After all flour is smoothly blended into juices, cook 10-15 minutes longer. Remove from heat, stir in seasoning and pour back into stew pot. Add water to the skillet and scrape bottom until the residue is dissolved in the water and add it to the stew pot. Continue baking about a half an hour until meat is done and serve.
Top with a crust of crumbled hardtack and serve over mashed potatoes.
Ingredients
2 cups of cornmeal
2/3 cup of milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
Mix ingredients into a stiff batter and form eight biscuit-sized "dodgers". Bake on a lightly greased sheet at 350 degrees for twenty to twenty five minutes or until brown. Or spoon the batter into hot cooking oil in a frying pan over a low flame. Remove the corn dodgers and let cool on a paper towel, spread with a little butter or molasses, and you have a real southern treat!
Fry pork in crumbled hardtack.
Cowboy Beans
Ingredients
2 Pounds pinto beans
2 Pounds salt pork
2 onion, finely chopped
4 Tablespoons sugar
2 green chiles, chopped (optional)
2 tomatoes
Serves: 6
Ingredients
2 Pounds lean meat
1/2 Cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 Cup soy sauce
1 Teaspoon each crushed garlic, red pepper, black pepper, salt
Serves: 6
You can dry meat and store it for later consumption and for centuries, the recipe has remained unchanged: Slice up the meat and hang it until all the water evaporates.
This is a good way to make it at Home
Partially freeze the meat so it's easier to slice into strips no more than 1/2-inch thick. Trim away fat. Mix the Worcestershire and soy sauces with the garlic in a dish. Rub the meat with a little salt and pepper and place it in the marinade. Refrigerate the marinating meat for at least 24 hours. Pat the meat dry and place it in a dehydrator or oven for 7 to 8 hours, until it's dry yet pliable. For oven drying, evenly space the meat on the rack and spread foil beneath it to catch the drips. Set the oven to 150°F, and leave the oven door open slightly for better circulation.
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